Star Wars: Jedi Dawn
by Malik Kajil
Summary: Five years have passed since the events of Star Wars: Shadow of the Sith, and a civil war as broken out. Under the guidance of Jedi Knight Xenos, Dakriel has become strong in the force, and a padawan learner. In a galaxy ravaged by civil war, the two Jedi are now the only hope for peace...
1. Prologue: Jedi Dawn

_**Prologue: Jedi Dawn**_

_**A long time ago, in a galaxy far far away...**_

Terror grips the galaxy as the last Sith Academy on the planet Voss falls to the might of a new Sith Lord. Five years after the destruction of Kamino's cloning facility, Malik and Athaliah have travelled the galaxy in search of the Jedi Knight, Xenos, seeking to destroy him. Unaware of the Jedi's presence on Belsavis, they have placed a bounty on his head large enough to gain the attention of the Hutts, and any bounty hunter skilled enough for the task.

Meanwhile, Xenos and Dakriel have spent the last five years training, with Dakriel becoming the Jedi Knight's apprentice. Under the watchful protection of the Duros sentients that took them in years ago, they have molded into a formidable duo, and set out to find other force sensitive sentients, if any still remain. The devastation of Lord Malik and Darth Mira has not gone unnoticed, but they are nowhere near prepared to face the Sith Lords just yet, and have set out for the distant planet of Cato Neimoidia.

Enraged by the attacks lead by Malik, many systems have begun to rebel, forming the separatist federation known as S.A.S: Systems Against the Sith. With multiple systems, both former Imperial and neutral systems, aligned against the Sith Empire, a civil war has begun, rendering some planets too hostile for inhabitance. With a galaxy at war, no one is safe, and no planet is off limits. With so much violence and disorder, only one hope remains for the galaxy: The Jedi Knight Xenos and his young padawan, Dakriel.

Outraged by the separatist S.A.S, Lord Malik has sent Darth Mira to lead a violent assault against the people of Corellia, demanding the execution of recently elected Chancellor Cain Windum, a human with the goal of freedom in mind. Surviving multiple assassination attempts, Windum has summoned an entire fleet to blockade the planet, as well as attacking known Imperial trade routes throughout the galaxy. As the future of the S.A.S darkens, the Chancellor's only hope is to strike victory in a battle against the Sith Empire...


	2. 1: Corellian Assault

**1: Corellian Assault**

Chancellor Cain Windum, who was a middle-aged man with solid black hair, and deep yellow eyes, stood calmly in his senatorial suite. Outside his window, signs of an inevitable battle could be seen, and he watched as countless blue and white armored troopers marched towards the heart of the capital city: Coronet. Advanced K-7Z9 Walkers, dubbed the "Mammoth Walkers" by the troopers, marched alongside them. The Mammoth Walkers were much taller than any other model of their kind in past designs, and as they stepped, the ground shook under all six of its metallic legs.

Word had come from an S.A.S slicer that Darth Mira would personally be leading the assault on Corellia, and that Cain himself was to be the main target. From his knowledge of both the Sith Empire's tactics, and that of the Troopers they once commanded, he knew that no matter how good the S.A.S army was, the chances of them succeeding at keeping him alive were slim. He gazed through the massive window, which scaled the entirety of the fifteen foot wall, admiring the grande army.

After about an hour of watching the grande army head into battle, an explosion went off just a few miles from his suite, and shook the entire building slightly. Still, this did not sway his calm demeanor, and he finally sat down, and took a sip of his wine. For almost three years, he had achieved many victories against the Sith Empire, freeing systems such as Naboo, and even Nal Hutta, from their tightening grip. However, he knew that this time, he would not be so lucky. In the end, no army was a match for the Sith Lords who now terrorized the galaxy, and just one was enough to expect defeat.

Luckily, there were now only two, and that meant that at any given time, they could only be on two planets at once. This gave the S.A.S a considerable edge, along with a newly rebuilt cloning facility on the S.A.S-aligned planet of Hoth. The dark Lord had indeed made a fatal error in destroying his cloning facility, but nonetheless, it seemed that there were enough loyalists who willingly joined the Sith Imperial Army, and an abundance of slaves who didn't have the option to reject.

As the battle outside ensued violently, the Chancellor sat calmly, and was unsurprised as Darth Mira herself came walking through the doors, sabers drawn. At first, they merely stared at each other, and Cain wondered if she would attack immediately, or entertain a conversation with him. Much to his surprise, she calmly withdrew her sabers, and sat across the long table from him with a mild scowl curling under her metallic visor.

"I guess I owe you some form of gratitude," he began after a short pause, "would you care for some wine?"

"I don't drink," she replied dryly, with a hint of impatience.

"Just me, then," he said calmly, watching as she glared at him, "We both know why you're here, so why not just kill me?"

"All in due time," she replied, "but first, I want to know why a general of the Sith Imperial Army would betray his own Lords?"

"Is it betrayal when a slave is freed, and stands against his captors," Cain argued, "I think not. Put quite simply, no one enjoys the rule of the Sith. Your kind are a reckless, sadistic bunch who only think inwards, and see others as pawns to use for your own selfish desires."

"Then we have something in common," she jeered, nodding in the S.A.S army's direction, "just as those troopers outside are your pawns in this...little game of ours."

"The difference is that I do not enjoy sending others to their deaths, even if it means victory against scum like you, nor do I view war as a game," he growled, showing a slight hint of anger, and then in a relaxing breath said, "but I wouldn't expect a Sith to understand."

"Thank you," she said after a moment of silence, then walked towards him slowly, "your insight has been most...revealing."

With his last breath, Cain cried out as Darth Mira's light saber impaled his stomach, and as he slowly died where he sat, she made her way out of the building. She headed back towards the landing pad, which she'd used to get to the building undetected, and hailed Lord Malik over her new fighter's comlink.

"It is done then," Malik's hologram asked as it lit up in a red aura of light.

"Yes, master," she replied, "the traitor is dead."

"Good," he replied darkly, "Finish seizing the capital, then return to me. I've just received a transmission that will turn the tides of this war in our favor."

"It will be done, milord," she replied as the comlink ended its transmission.

xxxxxxx

Although Xenos and his apprentice Dakriel had spent the last five years on the icy planet of Belsavis, Cato Neimoidia's heat brought them more discomfort than the latter. Most of the planet's surface had been ravaged by violently increasing sandstorms, and what was left of the floating structures now housed fugitives from the ensuing Galactic Civil War between the Sith Empire and the S.A.S. Two weeks had passed, and neither of the Jedi had come across any force sensitives in the last six facilities they'd visited. However, despite this, they'd helped the sentients who now resided here whenever possible, which suited Dakriel's desires more than anyone else's.

"I fear that if we fail to encounter a force sensitive here," Xenos began as they walked through an abandoned arena, "we should move on to another system."

"Master," Dakriel replied, "I thought you enjoyed these long walks?"

"I enjoy being productive," Xenos retorted, "and I'm not too thrilled to be walking around this dusty rock heap as it is. If there was a force sensitive here, we would've realized it by now..."

Suddenly, a squadron of Sith Imperial Fighters came roaring past them, and as they veered back, heading towards the two Jedi, both Xenos and his padawan could sense the danger. They made a dash for the far end of the massive arena, with no cover in sight, and both drew their light sabers. As the fighters came flying back in their direction, the Jedi ran as fast as they could, trying to avoid the blaster fire that was hailing down on them.

"What the hell are Sith fighters doing this far out in space," Dakriel shouted over the rain of blaster bolts, "They're not supposed to come near the neutral planets!"

"Tell them that," Xenos shouted back, dashing with a jolt of speed to avoid a pair of blaster bolts.

As the fighters closed in, both Jedi realized that they would not reach the exit of the arena in time. Ordering his apprentice to keep going, Xenos turned to face the fighters. Flourishing his light saber, he faced down the squadron without remorse, and as they roared closer towards him, raining blaster fire, he gathered as much force energy as he could. After a few seconds, the first fighter swooped down, firing at him with deadly precision.

"Master," Dakriel cried out, fearing the worst, but kept running.

As a mix of red blaster fire and dust flew in all directions, Xenos fired a wave of force energy into one of the fighters, causing it to roll hard to the right. Losing control, the Sith Imperial fighter smashed, cockpit-first, into the Arena's far wall, blocking their escape in a fiery explosion. After attacking the first fighter, Xenos leapt up, cutting the second one almost in half, and felt his saber bisect the fighter's pilot. Before it could crash, the fighter exploded in mid-air, barely missing Dakriel.

"You know master," Dakriel shouted over the blast, running back to where Xenos had landed, "sometimes I think you're trying to kill me."

"I'd never dream of that," Xenos replied as the other two fighters came roaring towards them, "New lesson, Daks: How to hijack a Sith Imperial fighter, without it landing."

"Are you out of your mind," Dakriel shouted incredulously, but didn't have time to think as Xenos leapt up, catching one of the fighters.

Leaping up himself, he barely caught the right wing of the fighter, and was struggling against the intense flight speed. By the time Xenos had successfully tossed the pilot out of his cockpit, Dakriel was still shimmying to the cockpit himself. Finally, after a great deal of effort, he'd reached the latch to the cockpit. Suddenly, just as he was reaching for the release latch, the fighter jolted up, flying directly for the planet's orbit, and sending him back to the wing. Dakriel had already found fighting the speed of the fighter difficult, but the ship had increased that as well as randomly barrel rolling to and fro.

Higher and higher the fighter climbed, and Dakriel thought he might vomit for a moment as it began to spin wildly. Finally, he reached the latch once again, and this time was much closer than before. Just as the heat of the Cato Neimoidia's orbit began to burn the fighter's heat shields up, Xenos opened the cockpit, tossed the pilot out using the force, and hopped in just in time to avoid the heat. Flames surrounded the glass shield of the fighter, and just as the pilot caught the fighter's wing, he was set ablaze, and plummeted to the planet's surface.

"Had some trouble, I see," Xenos' voice echoed through the comlink's static, "Come on, let's get back to our ship."

Turning back, both Xenos and Dakriel flew west, and headed for the condemned facility where they'd landed their ships. Not only had they worn out their welcome, but there would surely be more reinforcements. The last thing they wanted to do was put the refugees in danger by being here, and so they flew off.

xxxxxxx

Kamino's cloning facility had been destroyed all those years ago, however it was not the only facility left on the planet. During the ruling days of Lord Krotuss Vass, Kamino underwent a multitude of constructive projects, ranging from advanced weapons and spacecraft research facilities, as well as the most advanced medical facilities in the known galaxy. This proved fortunate for a mangled bounty hunter, who was barely hanging on to life, and stranded on the edge of her wits.

Willow had lost consciousness in the violent explosion, yet somehow awoken on a metallic slab, with the advanced droids performing repairs to her body. She hadn't been horrible disfigured, but one of her arms had been amputated, as well as losing one of her eyes to severe burns. In their place were cybernetic replacements, and upon her request, she'd had missiles and a wrist dart applied to her mechanical arm. Her cybernetic eye, which was mostly flat, served as a visual enhancer, and gave her a multitude of visual enhancements.

She'd spent the last five years trying to fix her damaged mind, yet was still haunted by nightmares from a former life. The screeching sound of the soulless clones still rang in her ears, their clawed, deformed hands tearing at her flesh, and their razor sharp teeth ripping into her. Chills would rush through her spine, and as she woke up in sweat screaming, only then would she realize the nightmare which dominated her mind. She was scarred, and even after five long years, she couldn't shake the fear from her soul. Her mind was in a constant state of panic and agony, and although she was clinically healthy, she knew it wasn't safe to leave.

"Hello, Matriarch," a medical droid hummed as it entered her room, "How are you today? Would you like me to bring you nourishment?"

"How long until I can leave," she growled in a crazed tone.

"You are free to leave the facility when you wish," the droid replied, unaware of the danger that Willow now posed, "would you like me to provide the necessary arrangements?"

"No," she replied after a long pause, "I can make my own way out..."

"Alert: Vital signs suggest violent tendencies," the droid began in a sudden alarm, but was cut off by Willow's blaster pistol.

Her mind had finally snapped, and as the psychotic bounty hunter casually left Kamino's medical bay, she took the first star ship she found, and left the planet. Her first priority was to find her ship, then kill the ones who had dared to take it. No longer would she give in to weakness, but instead mentally decided to finally become the killer every bounty hunter needed to be. Setting a course for the nearest system, she took off into hyper space, and blasted off into the stars.

xxxxxxx

As the Chancellor began to gasp for breath, a small boy came stumbling out of a containment unit. He was no older than nine years, and just like his father, had dark hair, but his eyes were a deep blue color, and resembled that of his mother, who had died some three years before. Running over to his father in tears, objects in the room began to fly in all directions as he lost control of his emotions.

"Calm yourself," Windum said in a raspy tone, "Do not hate them...Pity them, and pity their weakness."

"I will kill them, father," the boy replied in anger, "They will rue this day!"

"No, Kieth," his father scolded, "One day, you may yet kill them, but never act out of anger."

"What else am I to do," Kieth replied with more tears as the flying objects slowly descended, "There is nothing else."

"Seek out the Jedi," the Chancellor told him, "Through them, you will fulfill your true destiny...The galaxy can still...be saved..."

With his last words, Kieth's father finally succumbed to his wound, and passed away. Unable to control his emotions, Kieth let out a violent scream that shattered the room's windows, and sent out a shockwave of force energy that crumbled his surroundings. The burst had sent a wave through the force, and it stretched out across the galaxy, even to the point where Xenos and Dakriel could feel it. As he began to cry in despair, he took his father's blaster rifle from his belt, and took off outside.

xxxxxxx

Coronet City was already in flames, with only a few strong structures left, and those were being used as holdouts for the troopers. A few destroyed Mammoth Walkers lay in a heaped pile of metal and flames, as well as countless bodies of both S.A.S and Sith Imperial Troopers spread across the ground with their rifles. The battle was coming to a close, and although the S.A.S seemed to be winning the battle, a blood curdling sight came blaring through the killbox, sabers drawn.

Darth Mira had wasted no time in joining the fight, and was redirecting the blaster fire from the S.A.S troopers easily. Kieth had finally arrived just in time to see his father's murderer cut down the first squad of soldiers on the front lines. With tremendous skill and deadly precision, she diced her way through hundreds of them, sparing no one, and allowing the Sith Imperial forces to finally advance. Rushing into battle, Kieth drew his blaster and gunned down enemy soldiers left and right.

The element of surprise had given him just the edge he needed to dwindle their forces with ease, but he had gained the Sith's attention, and she was now rushing at him with blinding speed. In her flurry of force lightning and slashes, she hadn't taken the time to notice Kieth's connection to the force, and the energy from the intense battle had dulled her senses to the point that she hadn't felt the tremor in the force he'd created moments before.

Gathering as much energy as he could, he let the force flow through him, and as she lunged to deliver the killing blow, he began to glow. She leapt up in a high front flip, and prepared to strike him down. Stepping back, and just as her saber nearly connected to his chest, he fired a wave of force energy that sent her flying back into a crashed walker, and knocked her unconscious. He stepped forward slowly, taking one of her sabers with the force, and was getting ready to execute her. Before he had time to finish her off, however, an S.A.S trooper ran by, picked him up, and carried him away from the battle field.

"Hey kid," the trooper yelled out as he returned fire to the enemy soldiers, "You're not supposed to be here, come on get out of here!"

"Let me go," Kieth yelled back, struggling against the trooper's strong hold over him, "I demand that you release me at once, I am the Chancellor's son!"

"Sorry kid," the trooper replied, "Can't let you go into battle. Maybe when you're older! Now go!"

The trooper released him just beyond the edge of an uninhabited building, and ran back into battle. The sound of blaster fire continued to distort the air around him, and he looked around for some way he could help the troopers. There had to be _something _he could do. Searching the inside of what was once a weapon testing site, he managed to find the cache of experimental projectile launchers. It had only taken him half an hour of searching, but he'd finally found something he could use. Taking the biggest one he could find, he dragged it over to the window facing out into the battle field below.

Before he had intervened, the S.A.S had been pushing the Sith Empire back, but now the tides were turned. With only half of their forces left, and no walker to counter the Sith Imperial S-48V, which was slightly smaller than the Mammoth Walkers, but equal in fire power, he knew he needed to act fast. Hoisting the prototype launcher over his shoulder, he aimed as best he could at the S-48V, and fired. The kick knocked him on his behind hard, and he dropped the launcher clumsily. Whistling down towards the walker, the missile flailed, but missed its intended target. Instead, it jerked to the left, and crashed into a large group of Sith Imperial troopers. The splash from the explosion took out at lest fifty troopers, and the flames that stretched out had engulfed another twenty or so troopers.

Kieth got back up, ran to grab the launcher, and tried again. This time, he didn't use the targeting device. Instead, he could hear his father's voice in his mind: _Focus, Kieth, use the force to feel the right time to strike. Calm your senses...control them..._ Closing his eyes, he waited, and let the force guide his hands. Adjusting only slightly to the right, he squeezed the trigger hard, and again was knocked back by the kick of the launcher. This time, the missile was going much straighter than it had before, and struck the S-48V directly in the side of its main hull. In a massive explosion, the surrounding troopers were killed instantly, with a few dozen more being crushed by the large metallic wreckage that was now raining down on them.

With the walker out of the way, Kieth watched as the S.A.S finally overwhelmed the Sith Empire, and took control of the capital city: Coronet. Running back to where Darth Mira had once been, he found nothing. She must have escaped during the confusion of battle, and he felt his anger begin to swell again.

Making his way back to his father's corpse, he sat quietly, finally allowing himself time to mourn. A deep sadness fell over him, and even as the troopers rushed in, discovering the carnage for themselves, he remained quiet. For the next month, he would do little more than meditate, and allow the force to soothe his broken heart. He would fulfill his father's dying wish, and seek out the Jedi, though he was certain they had been wiped out long ago. Now armed with a light saber, he would train only when he was ready to; when the force told him he was ready.


End file.
